I gotta confession to make. I feel really guilty about this, because the knitters who are the most vocal (writers and podcasters) kinda make it sound like we all always have something on the needles for charity. Other mortal knitters, the quiet majority, will recognize themselves in my guilt, I think.
I’ve always meant to knit for charity, really I have. I just, well, haven’t yet (insert long reflective pause right about here).
When it comes to charity in general, I’ve really only had one strong feeling about it, and that’s to be sure you take care of your own before looking for others to help. I know, that sounds anti-charity at first, but hear me out.
As does every region, we have local folks in need too. They don’t have celebrities on TV on their behalf, and they’re not on the other side of the planet. They’re your neighbors in your subdivisions or in the next holler across the ridge. They’re your coworkers and classmates. They’re your friends, and they’re the folks in line behind you at the grocery store.
Check out the Mission of Hope serving Appalachians, as a stellar example.
I don’t think it’s being egocentric to want to take care of the folks around me, before worrying about strangers on the other side of the planet. If I could do it all, well allrighty then, but I’m just a mortal knitter and have to choose in which direction I’m going to aim my efforts.
Ya know, I can do a little something, and I choose local folks.
Yesterday morning, I was looking at my LYS’s site to be sure about their store hours before driving down there, and saw something I’ve already seen several times. But for some reason, this time, it leaped out of my monitor and bit me on the nose (hence this post, lol). Preemie caps, that will ultimately go to our own babies right here at the East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, are not only being called for but are the challenge presented to us!
See the Yarn Haven’s home page for the details about who threw down the knitted gauntlet, challenging us Tennessee knitters.
That sent me off on a prowl of Ravelry’s patterns for preemie caps, to add to the free pattern offered by the LYS, and then off to said LYS with a decision made to help. I had this one skein I needed for a WiP (work in progress) that I was just this much short on having enough for. With the change left over, I also picked up a skein of baby yarn.
OMG, I can’t believe I bought baby yarn – squeal!
But ya know what really tipped me over the fence-sitting and into the yard of charity knitting? It wasn’t anything noble, but rather how easy these patterns are. There’s a lot of sentiment and love that’s gonna come out of a tiny little thing that took nearly no effort and the tiniest amount of yarn. What clinched it for me? The pattern description that these itty bitty hats only need to be sized to fit an orange! Something so quick to knit up that I could sneeze one of those out, and yet that’s all this local charity is asking of me. What kind of a knitting Volunteer would I be if I turned my back on that?
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